Wire frame.



G. K. RIX.

WIRE FRAME.

APPLICATION 111,111) 1111111, 1909.

Patented Apr. 18, 1911.

erases 1:. state mileage rumors, Assrenen To nan enh wmn {a moiv weeks, or LA FAYETTE, 'INDIANA, A C'ORPORATION or INDiANiA. 1

WIRE FRAME.

Specification or Ihet'ters Patent.

original application iiled February 3", lfig serial 2175,8 10, jIYi'vi'dd and this a'pplicatioia filed July 1, 1909. Serial No. 505,532.

T'O UZZ whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, Guonon K. Rix, citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have inventedjoertain new and useful Improveinents inVVire Frames; and I do hereby declare. the following to be a full, clear, and exact description ofthe invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it filppei'tainsto make and use the same. I This invention relates to a novel construction in concaVo-conveX wire frames, the objectbeiri'g to provide devices of this charact'er having certain particular and peculiar characteristics by which said frames are rendered more stiff; durable and resilient than ordinarily and by meansof which the cost of producing the same is materially reduced and in which the use of special reinforcing means, at the points, of intersection of relatively, transversely disposed wires are omit-- ted whereby said frames are rendered neater ina pearance.

T e invention consists in the novel features of construction hereinafter fully described and claimed; i

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention: Figure ,'1- is a front elevation of a baseballjmask exemplifying a concavo-convex wire frame constructed in accordance with my invention. Figs. --2- and ,3 are respectively fragmentary detail longitudinal and transverse sections of the same on the lines 2-2 and 3"3 of Fig.

1. Fig. 4. is a view similar to Fig.

'-2 showing the wires in their relative.

positions prior to the finishing operation.

This application is a division of my application for Letters Patent for wire frames ahd methods of making same, filed February 3, 1909, Serial No. 475,840, which resulted in 1 the issue o-n September .7, 1910, of Letters;

Patent No. 933,342.

The frame constituting the subject of this 3 application is the product of the method described and claimed in the aforesaid Letters Patent and the peculiar and particularcharaeteristics constltuting the novel features of the said frame are produced by the particu lar; method of making the same.

In the manufacture of concave-convex wire frames ofthe heavy grades in particular and in which a large number of relatively, short pieces of heavy wire are emp oyed, as for example in baseball masks, it is primarily very difficult to keep the res ective wires in proper relative position. wing tothe weight and stiffness of the wire employed, in the manufacture of these frames it is primarily necessary to first bend the wires composing the frame each into its oper shape and then assemble said wires. Pie assembling is effected by looping the ends of the respective wires over transversely extending wires disposed either at the edge portion or atother points in the frame. in contracting the loops aroundthe wires embraced thereby it is endeavored to clamp .them as tightly as possible, but it will be obvious that slippage of the wires cannot possibly be, avoided. Each of the wires composing the frame andwhichextends inwardly of the edge portion of the latter passes over or under other transversely extending wires between its ends and between the ends of the latter. It has been attempted to secure these wires together at the crossing or intersection points either by so]- dcring, wiring or the use of clips of sheet metal and sometimes the clips or the wire are first disposed around such points and the latter then soldered. However, such frames are subject to very rough treatment and none of these joining means serves to hold the wires properly in relative position and furthermore the use of these means renders the points of intersection large and clumsy and present at these points one or more sharp projections which not only are liable to in ure the hands of the users of the frames but in the case of baseball masks frequently rip and injure the covers of the balls striking. the masks.

The wires when assembled in the frame and before being secured together at their points of intersection are, loose and relatively free to move and each wire must bear the full strain imparted to it as such strains or stresses, (as they may be called) are not distributed to other wires and the Weak nature of the joints effected at the point of intersection by means of solder and the like cause such joints to give way and break under severer strains instead of distributing the latter to the wires to which the wire bearing the strain is secured.

The object of my invention is to provide a frame of this nature such as a baseball mask 01' other shapes as for example, lampguards, basket-s and the like, in which heavy wire is employed in which all of the wires composing the frame are secured together at every point of intersection so that any strains or stresses imparted to one wire will be transmitted to the other wires and which said frame is, by reason of the method of constructing the same, inherently stiffer and more resilient than frames constructed in other ways.

In the construction of the baseball mask illustrated as exemplifying a concavo-convex wire frame embodying my invention the arched longitudinal wires A are disposed inwardly of the arched transverse wires B, said wires being disposed respectively on the concave and convex faces of the frame. The loops O and D at the ends of said wires are first inserted and contracted upon the Wires engaged thereby and after completion of the structure the said wires A and B are welded together at each of the crossing points E between their ends. An edge wire F is employed which constitutes the primary anchoring member to which some of the wires composing the body of the frame are secured or anchored at their terminals. It is not material whether a few or all of the last-named wires are so secured to the edge wire as the points at which the wires A and B are anchored at their terminals depends entirely upon the nature and shape of the frames to be produced.

.The wires composing the frame are relatively very heavy in proportion to the dimensions of the frame itself and accordingly said wires are very stifi and relatively unyielding. After primarily completing the frame by assembling all of the wires in proper relative positions I impart to the wires A tension stresses and to the wires B compression stresses which become permanent therein this being efi'ected by shrinking said wires A and B partially into each other at all crossing points in the presence of welding heat whereby they are welded together and become homogeneous with each other at all intersecting points between their ends. It will be obvious that in order to effect this the wire A on the concave face of the frame must be forced outwardly toward the convex face of the frame and the wires B must be crowded in the opposite direction against the action of the wire or wires upon which said wires A and B respectively are anchored at their terminals. In this manner all of the slack, as it may be called, in the every other and wherein strains or stresses imparted to one member are distributed over all in accordance with their respective positions therein.

The structure described differs materially from those which are made up by assembling wires in a flat plane and subsequently bending the resulting structure to concavo-convex shape as in the act of bending or forming the latter distortion and inequality in the composing elements results whereas by first making up the frame so that each of its component elements is disposed in proper relative position and then welding the same together at the crossing points while forcing them slightly out of their normal positions in order to shrink them into each other each of the component elements retains its original strength with the result that the completed structure is very much stronger.

The strength of a structure is that of its weakest part and accordingly a distorted and thus weakened portion of a wire frame determines the strength of the frame. avoiding distortion of any of the component elements of the frame the latter is assured against greater weakness in one part than in another.

In the act of welding the wires are heated to a high degree and are expanded and in cooling they shrink but the shrinkage cannot pull them from the welded joints and must therefore be taken up at the terminals and between adjacent welded joints.

I claim as my invention:

1. A concavo-convex wire frame comprising two sets of relatively transversely disposed arched wires, and an edge wire, each of said arched wires anchored at its terminals to transversely disposed wires, and homogeneous between its ends with intersecting transversely disposed wires, said wires being inherently under permanent tension and compression stresses, substantially as described. j

2. A concavo-convex wire frame comprising two sets of relatively transversely disposed arched wires, said respective sets of wires being respectively disposed on the conof intersection between their ends, said set In testimony whereof I have signed my thereof on the concave face of the frame bename in presence of two subscribing witing inherently under permanent tensile nesses.

stresses, and said set on the convex face of GEORGE K. RIX. 5 the frame being inherently under ermanent Witnesses:

compression stresses, substantially as de- G. A. JOHNSON,

scribed. W. B. RIx.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

- Washington. D. G. 

